Simple yet Complicated
by Kagurazaka
Summary: Ai made a mistake, a mistake that led to dire consequences. It is a simple thing to do, yet so complicated for her.
1. Default Chapter

Simple yet Complicated

**Disclaimer: **Why don't you just click open any random story and paste its disclaimer here?

**Chapter One**

Haibara Ai hated Kudou Shinichi, no, Edogawa Conan with every fiber of her being. She hated him so much that she was willing to bludgeon him to hell with anything she could reach right now and strangle him until his face turned blue and air becoming the luxury he would never ever feel again. Oh how she would enjoy watching him gasp for breath, letting out a weak croak, begging her to release him. And how she would love to watch him die slowly, she would smirk at his struggling body, enjoying the fact that he would be suffering with unbearable pain to accompany him through his last agonizing seconds. Yes, she would do those things to him if she could, all because of one simple reason. He made her drunk.

---

It all started when Conan suddenly remembered the effects of the Paikaru beer. Yes, that simple, seemingly innocent thing had led her to the hell of misery.

They were at the supermarket, buying groceries for Agasa at that time when Conan suddenly exclaimed something about some beer out of the blue.

"Excuse me?" She said, having absolutely no idea about what he was talking about. Conan didn't answer her but instead pulled her towards the alcoholic beverage section and began browsing for something. Ai raised her eyebrow, "I didn't know you're an alcoholic, Kudou. Maybe you should wait until you have gained your old body back before continuing with you habit?"

He ignored her sarcastic comment and went on with his browsing. She watched his busy figure slightly disinterested. Why would Conan drag her here just to watch him searching for some beer was beyond her.

A loud shout of "Aha!" surprised caught her by surprise. Conan immediately made his way towards her and held something an inch away from her face. A bottle of beer.

"See this?" Conan said cheerfully, as if he was done solving a really hard case.

Her eyebrow went up another centimeter. "Yes, I see it. Are you here just to test my vision? If it is, I'm leaving."

She turned and walked away, but stopped abruptly when he grabbed her shoulder and turned her towards him by force.

Ai glared at him coldly, "Let's get the facts straight, Kudou. If you think that I'm interested in sharing a bottle of beer with you, forget it. You're fortunate that I didn't _accidentally _break your bone from retaliation when you grabbed me."

He gave her a lopsided, nervous grin. "I'm sorry for grabbing you like that, but please at least hear me out. It will worth your time, I promise."

She thought about it for a moment, and finally nodded. His eyes sparkled and so he began telling about his first encounter with Heiji, how he was suffering from flu then and was forced to drink a bottle of paikaru. After some detail about the case, he finally came to the important bit, about how he went back to his old body during that event, something which he assumed was because of that beer.

The young chemist eyed him like he had just willingly become Gin's slave. After a long pause, she finally spoke, "Are you sure you weren't dreaming?"

Conan sighed; this kind of expression was expected. "Look, Haibara, I didn't dream of it, that thing I'm sure. Why won't you believe me? I have every concrete proof to prove it."

She stared at him. "And that is…?"

"Just ask Heiji, he'd say the same thing too." He chirped confidently.

Another sigh, this time from Ai. She knew it was quite pointless to argue with the over determined Conan, and she certainly wasn't going to waste her time doing so. _Just let him have his way and be over with it, _she thought,but there was a statement she had to make to ensure herself. "It sounded too much like a fairy tale to believe, if it _is _true, why haven't you reverted to your old body by now?"

Conan looked sheepish, "Err- Because my system's already immune to it, so I couldn't make it work twice."

She stared at him with a deadpanned look, as if to say, 'I-know-you're-planning-to-make-me-your-guinea-pig-and-you-suck.'

He laughed weakly.

---

Conan had somehow succeeded in making Ai agree to drink a whole bottle of it when they reached Agasa's house. And here they were, watching Ai gulp down glasses of the alcohol containing liquid that they were 12 years too young too drink. Physically anyway.

Ai had reached the sixth glass by now, finishing roughly 2/3 of the content. Her face was beet red.

Agasa watched her with unease, "Shinichi? Shouldn't we stop her?"

The person in question had just finished her seventh glass and was pouring the eighth glass.

Sweat drop rolled down Conan's head, "Uh, we tried, remember? She kicked me." He pointed to his swollen cheek.

They continued to watch silently as the drunken chemist finished the first bottle and moved to the second one.

---

Ai woke with a groan. Her hand unconsciously moved towards her temple and massaged it to ease the headache that had immediately hit her as she gained consciousness. Her mind was still in point Blanc when the door opened, revealing the worried face of Conan and Agasa.

"Ohayou, Ai, are you feeling better?" The professor greeted her for a start. Ai merely groaned and begged for some aspirin. Hastily, Conan raced out of her room and came back with a box of aspirin and a glass of water. He inched towards her bed and held both items out. She distinctively reached for it and took a pill from the box. She washed it down with water and after she was finished, handed the empty glass back at Conan. Agasa hovered over the two tiny figures and questioned her once more, "How are you feeling? Is there something you need?"

Ai grunted and plopped back at her pillow. She didn't know why, but she was in a bleak mood. She sensed that something happened the night before that she didn't like, she _was _drunk after all, so anything could happen, ranging from bad to worst and she wouldn't have a clue what. And she didn't like it. "Thank you for your _concern_, professor. I feel _fine_, _very fine_, in fact, I need _nothing_ more than having a _headache_ the _first _thing in the morning."

Judging by her reply, both Conan and Agasa knew that Ai was pissed and it was time to quietly retreat out of there. They came to that conclusion not because of her derogatory response, but because of the amount of words she unnecessarily stressed in that single sentence. Anyway, the professor quickly withdrew, but Conan, against his better judgment, decided to remain there.

He slipped to the seat beside her bed and began talking, "I didn't know you're such an abusive drinker," He grinned with a slight hint of mischievousness.

"And whose fault is _that?"_ She snapped back, eyeing him with black anger. She knew something was wrong when she saw that grin. Her eye traveled to his face, noticing its swollen cheek. "Did I do that?"

"Well, yeah. You kicked me when I was trying to stop you from chugging down the whole bottle."

"Oh." The fact that he was wounded gave her a little dot of satisfaction, but it was still not enough to swallow her disdain at him for making her drunk. She was, after all, most vulnerable when she was drunk. But to make it up, she was also an abusive drinker, who has the habit of striking anyone who went to close to her. For example, the boy in front of her.

She rose slowly. "Well, I am _regretfully_ _sorry _to inform you that whatever thing you have made me drink did not work. Now, would you _kindly_ shove over so I can get out of this bed?"

He obeyed and pushed the chair back, providing enough space for Ai to walk past it and towards the door. "Where are you going?"

Turning towards him, she answered, "Researching." It was as simple as that and she resumed her pace towards the door. But Conan had raced towards the door first and blocked it.

"You can't." He said.

She raised her eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

He fished something out of his pocket. A recorder, and pressed a button. A slightly crackled voice came out of it. She recognized it as hers.

"You know, you're just a cocky arrogant haughty detective that has nothing to (hiccup) attract women. I bet I can do anything that you (hiccup) cannot do." It had a drunken slur in it.

Then Conan's voice was heard. "Like what, Haibara? Drinking like some mad cow and kicking anyone who got close to you?"

"Any (hiccup) thing, you're just a loser; you can't beat me (hiccup)." Ai cringed at this. At this point, she was 100 sure that the next thing happening was going to put her life through hell. When she was Shiho, she was quite known for her notoriety of making impossible bets with Gin when she was drunk (That she always lost afterwards and resulted in doing 'things' for Gin that she would never ever want to remember for the rest of her live.).

"Well…since I personally think that you're _too _mature for your age, how about behaving like normal children for a month?"

"Oh (hiccup) yeah? You think so? But I can be a child too, you see?" The drunk Ai in the recorder began singing 'Baa-baa black sheep' with a hoarse, off key voice.

The real Ai cringed again, this time from embarrassment. And the laughing Conan amplified it by a hundred times. In fact, he was laughing so hard that tears began forming on his eyes.

Finally, after one minute of complete humiliation, the taped-Ai finished her song. Conan's voice was once again heard, this time full of amusement. "So, are you going to accept that bet or not?"

"Sure, do you think I'll loose to you? (Hiccup) You're on!"

Conan pressed another button, turning it off. "So?" he asked, grinning widely. His face clearly etched of slyness.

Ai's exterior remained cool and impassive, totally the opposite of her inside. Her inside was… chaotic. Humiliation, anger, embarrassment, and disdain was swirling into one, overlapping each other until it was nothing but a blur and she was unable to tell each one apart. That was how hectic it was.

"Do you seriously think that I will obey that silly dare? How wrong of you, Kudou." She spoke calmly.

He didn't say anything and instead pressed a button. This time it ignited the sound of her singing 'Baa-baa Black sheep'. His grin grew even wider.

Ai's eyes widened in realization, "Oh no, you wouldn't dare…"

"I wonder what everyone's reaction will be upon hearing the infamous, socially inept Haibara sing…"

She glared at him with black anger and stomped out of there. She could hear Conan shouting the cursed words as she descended down the flight of stairs.

"Don't forget to act like a kid!"

Her mind was now blaring, thinking murderously of torture methods she would **_love_** to use at him, and probably will, soon enough.

---

Later on that day, Conan gave her a paper with his typical handwriting scrawled all over it. Curiously, she began reading it.

_Things to do and **NOT** to do:_

_No researching. Eight year olds simply do not understand the complexity of researching._

_Spend time with Ayumi. You will learn how to be a proper child from her._

_Eat ice cream. I know you hate sweet things, but kids eat ice cream, and you're now a kid, so behave like one._

_No using last names. Kids do not use it. Use first name + chan instead._

_Smile, be cheerful. And quit shooting me death glares._

_Cross difficult words out of your vocabulary, no complex sentence structure as well._

_Sleep over with Ayumi or Ran._

_Wear pink frilly dress, it seems to be popular amongst girls these days._

_Do not talk or mention about that APTX, you're now simply Haibara Ai, Sherry or Miyano Shiho doesn't exist._

_Participate on the upcoming school festival._

_Will be added in future, meanwhile enjoy: )_

The disdain and anger she felt for him was instantly replaced with pure, extremely immense hate and loathe that would make Lucifer nothing more than a baby that had just learned to crawl.

_I swear I will make your live hell from now on. You'll pay for what you did, Kudou…_

**_Continued…_**

A note about paikaru, I don't know if that was spelled right or not. The version I read was the Indonesian translation, so I have absolutely no idea. If anyone knows the real name, please, do tell.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this fic, and **REVIEW!** I cannot simply stress how much I would appreciate it. Thankies! Oh, and if you have sugestions to add to the 'Things to do and NOT to do list', feel free to inform me. Ciao.


	2. Chapter 2

Simple yet Complicated

**Disclaimer**: Click back, highlight the disclaimer and copy paste it.

**Chapter Two**

It was raining that day, which Ai took as gratitude. She was supposed to accompany the Detective Boys to some dumb Kamen Rider show on some dumb park after school (of course with Conan suggesting it), but the rain would prevent that from ever happening. And she thanked it.

Ignoring the teacher, she gazed out of the class room window smugly, watching droplets of water pour down from the gray tinted sky. But of course, due to her seat's position, gazing out to the window without having Conan in the view was impossible. Even though he was scribbling something on his note book and paid not attention to her, it was still frustrating. The mere sight of him would almost always send her mind reeling back to a _certain _event that involved drinking, a bet, a tape recorder and blackmail. Not the least enjoyable.

She let out a soft sigh. Maybe she was going to forget about it for once. The rain had such soothing feeling that she couldn't help but forget all about her problems and continued watching it fall.

Watching the rain was an old habit. Sherry would always watch the rain from her lab. It had become the only solitude that kept her sane during those times, apart from infrequent meetings with Akemi. It had, in a way, become her friend. It reminded her that freedom still existed out there and that maybe, she would experience it once again. That little dream was the only thing Sherry possessed that hadn't been taken away by the organization.

Ai was lost in her thoughts, until she realized that the torrent had become thinner and thinner, until it disappeared completely.

_Oh- crap._

Maybe going to that dumb show was inevitable, after all.

---

Ai looked at the mirror and flinched. What was staring back at her was horrid. It was herself, looking like a clown. Yes, she was wearing a **_PINK FRILLY DRESS_**.

It was horrid.

It was terrible.

It was disgusting.

It was nauseating.

It was repulsive.

It was sickening.

It was appa- "Ai-chan, you look great!" Ran exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

_Yeah, and you look like a super star compared to me_. Ai thought bitterly, rolling her eyes. She could hear muffled laughter coming from a boy she would gladly strangle to death with the pink bow she was holding.

Her eyes narrowed into slits, "Find this so funny? Why don't _you_ try it yourself then, Ku- Conan-_chan_"

He stopped laughing. It was no mere slip of the tongue when she almost exposed his identity. He understood. Any wrong move and he would certainly feel the wrath of Ran's kick.

"Uh, no," He stuttered weakly. "I think I'll just watch TV until you're done."

He slowly retreated out of the room, the cold gaze of Ai he could still feel on his back.

---

"It's not that bad, okay?"

"Not that _bad_? It wouldn't look _that_ bad on _you_, but right now I look like a clown, or a prostitute, or a target for pedophiles."

"Would you two stop bickering? I'm trying to drive here."

The two tiny figures on the back seat went silent, obeying Agasa's demand. Conan stared at Ai, and he received a hateful glare back.

He snorted, "Keep frowning and you'll have to do a facelift when you're ten."

She acted as if he didn't say anything and instead started a new topic. "Kudou? I was wondering, what would you do once the antidote is finished?"

"I-"

"Because," she cut in, her voice soft, "It's… completed."

He stared at her wide eyed, unable to process the news. Then the confused look turned into a look of disbelieving.

"Re- really?"

She nodded.

He let out a joyful yelp and pulled her in a bear hug.

"Thank you, Haibara! You're the best!"

Ai calmly brushed him off and rummaged through her pink frilly dress's pocket. She tossed a small box at him.

He opened it enthusiastically and plopped something into his mouth without even looking at it. His observant smirked at the scene, but she quickly hid it as he turned her way.

"So, when is this going to work?"

A brief pause. "Soon, Kudou… Soon…"

---

Ai got out of the car and looked around, totally oblivious to the mini detective behind her, which didn't look very well.

She continued to stride forward, but stopped when Conan tugged at the hem of her pink frilly dress, motioning her to turn around.

"What the heck did you just gave me?" He started, clutching his stomach from pain.

Her trade mark smirk beginning to form, she answered callously, "An antidote, what do you expect?"

"But, what the hell does it has to do with stomach ache?" He moaned painfully and continued, "Have you ever invented something that's not painful?"

Her eyebrow rose slightly, hiding the fact that she was deftly enjoying seeing him suffer from immense pain. Heck, if there was a show featuring him suffering, she'd be the first in line to watch it. Not that she was a sadist or whatever; she just enjoyed watching him, and only him, and maybe some other people, suffer. "It's phase one, Kudou, it will soon end, and you will be back to your old self again."

He eyed her suspiciously, ignoring the growing pain. "Are you sure the pill that you gave me was the antidote?"

She didn't need to answer; he was already racing past her to the bathroom.

_Phase__ one completed, and now this dress…_

Ignoring the occasional glances of strangers and their remark of how 'kawaii' she was, she began to find a solution to get out of the pink frilly dress.

Step 1: Analyzing

_Scratch that, already did, look like a clown._

Step 2:

"Ai-chan!"

Theory

_I look like a clown. Done._

"Ai-chan!"

Step 3:

_…this isn't helping._

"AI-CHAN!"

Ai snapped towards the direction of the shout, and then she saw Ayumi making her way between crowds and towards her.

Once she reached her, Ayumi immediately shouted what she knew she'd shout, "Oh, Ai-chan, you look kawaii!"

Ai bit her lower lip bitterly; being told she was cute by someone ten years younger than her was definitely not flattering.

"Yeah, not to mention that I would easily be the next target of a pedophile freak." She retorted.

"Pedophile?" Ayumi asked, wide eyed with wonder.

"Yeah, pedophile."

"I mean, what's a pedophile?"

Ai paused, this question was unexpected. She agonizingly searched for the right words to explain the term without being too explicit and harm a child's still-innocent knowledge with foul terms.

"It's, ah-" She began, this was the rare times she would actually stutter, not throwing down sarcastic comments at anyone for asking such silly question. "It's a term used to describe someone, mainly adults who have the tendency to mo- like children well bellow their age."

Ayumi's mouth formed an **O**, but then started asking questions again.

"My mom and dad like me, so does it mean they're pedophiles too?"

Ai was beginning to have a hard time explaining the complexity of the term pedophile. "No, please bear in mind, that your parents are not pedophiles, so do not regard them as being so. What I mean is, an adult that does not only _like _the child, but lusts for the child."

She realized what she had just said.

_Oh- damn._

"Lust?"

It was only then that she realized how sex ed. should start from play group.

She looked around, searching for a savior that would save her from answering that question, and luckily, she spotted one. And her so called savior spotted her too.

Conan walked towards her, fuming. He had been through hell at the bathroom, and he was a hundred percent sure it was Ai's doing.

"Haibara and her idiotic, immature antics," He muttered angrily. He was about to just charge towards her and demand explanation when Ayumi blocked his way, looking as cheerful as ever.

"Ne, Conan-kun? What is lust?"

"_What?"_

---

Mitsuhiko stared at Ai, then blushed. He lowered his head to his bangs would shadow his face and hide his beet red face. Even though he was sure he did it quick enough that she didn't notice it, he still had a feeling that she knew.

"H-hi, you, eh, look great today…" He trailed off.

"Thank you, Mitsuhiko-_chan__." _Then, to his surprise, she smiled. Please note, she smiled, not smirked or any other action synonymous to that. But what really surprised him, was that she called him Mitsuhiko-CHA-N. He was too happy to even notice that she had already walked past him and addressed Ayumi, Conan, and Genta with the same way she addressed him.

And he didn't notice the restraint on the last part of the name. Or how she exchanged death glares with Conan, or how Conan kept tapping his pocket with a rectangular object bulging from it. Or that her smile didn't reach her eyes.

He was oblivious.

---

At approximately eight o'clock, they parted, each one heading towards different directions, except Conan and Ai.

Mitsuhiko stole a glance at Ai as she went into the car.

_"Mitsuhiko-chan…"_

He noticed her change of attitude. How she called him Mitsuhiko-chan now, how she smiled more often. It wasn't the usual smirk, but a smile. And she directed it at him.

Maybe, just maybe, he would just have a chance with her…

**_Continued…_**

This is going to be an MxA story, HA…HA! Just kidding. Anyway, I somehow have a prediction, that soon, the bet will not be the main focus of the story, you guys good with that? If you don't want it to be that way, please kindly say so, and I'll uh- revert the story back to its original focus.

Mata ao ne! (Oh, and please review!)

Btw, I am an Indonesian (winks).


	3. Chapter 3

Simple yet Complicated

**Disclaimer:** Click back twice; highlight the disclaimer, press ctrl+c, then go back here and press ctrl+v.

Sorry for the ridiculously long update, WoW is a drug addiction I tell you. Since I haven't written anything in such a long time, my skills may rust a bit (ignoring how rusty it already is), but I shall strive my best. I apologize for any OOCness that may occur (although the reason _might_ be unfolded in later chapters), especially revolving our favorite protagonists. Warning: This fic goes from normal to sappy to disgustingly corny. Do not sue the author if you find yourself wanting to undergo memory removal procedure after reading this atrocious fic. Oh, and Ai may seem a tad bit sadistic in this fic, but that was to be expected, since I myself would go hell bent on revenge if someone dares to blackmail me. Probably more than her.

Note:

Omiai: Arranged marriage

**Chapter three**

It was raining.

_Again._

Ai let out a barely noticeable sigh. She took a brief glance towards the rain splattered window and went back to reading a random fashion magazine she randomly bought from a random store. Sure, rain was something she took as gratitude, but not if it rained five days straight.

No.

She didn't mind that. It's the _boy _sitting across the room that had best made raining that depressing the first time in her life, for obvious reasons. Oh well, it was her luck that he had been unusually quiet today. Deciding to just cope with the fact that she had to be under the same roof with him until the Mouris decide to come back from their whatever trip – An explanation she never bothered to hear –. She flipped to some random page of the magazine, eyeing the page riddled with slim models with much disinterest. Unable to concentrate, she diverted her gaze back to the window, then back to the magazine. After some random flipping she snapped it shut.

"Oh, snap out of it Kudou. You've been staring at me for the past ten minutes. Is there anything you want to say or have you just realized your fascination with me?" She remarked brusquely.

The boy it was addressed to flinched slightly, it seems the sudden outburst had surprised him from his thoughts. "Yeah well-" He started, blushing for no particular reason (Ai noted this, and smirked inside). "You know, about the other night…"

Oh, the _other _night when she had to wear a **pink frilly dress**, and had to explain what a _certain_ word that kids their age (excluding the pseudo ones that was currently on a rather bad term) should wait at least 5 years later to even be exposed to such atrocity of a word.

_**Thanks** for reminding._

Then there's something else…

Wait, did she just forget something?

Something along the line of…

"It's about-" A slight pause. Hesitation perhaps? "About the phony drug you gave me, Haibara." He said with a clipped tone. No, not the type people use when they're angry, but the type bad liars use when they're trying to ask something but instead went the other way. Her gaze lingered at him, a bit longer than usual. She was sure what he really intended to say had to do what the bit she forgot during the dumb kamen rider show. Wringing it out of him within the next hour or so is impossible, unless she used _that _method. But no, her mood has been quite bleak that day (second to the day when she decided that alcohols are worse than guns).

She decided to just play along. Screw the thing she forgot. She wasn't the type of person that would easily forget something, lest she did, it was probably minor details that needed no further ado.

Popping her chin on her palm, she leaned forward and gave him her smirk(tm) and questioned him _almost_ innocently, "What about the drug? I'm _sorry_ it didn't work, it seemed that I _miscalculated_ something" She stated simply, her tone was clearly prominent of mockery.

The boy who was sitting smugly on the couch just a minute ago glared at her, his eyes clearly saying, Yeah-and-Sherlock-is-an-idiot. Then relented and twitched uncomfortably, albeit subtle, but Ai noticed it. Her attentiveness rivals those of the oh so _great _detective after all.

A barely noticeable sigh escaped his lips. It was himself to blame for his lack of awareness anyway. He should've known the extent of damage he had induced to her pride when she wistfully objected the bet.

_Although it was quite amusing…_

A flashback of Ai in the _cute _dress threatened him to burst into laughter. But no, he held back, with her irritation still prominent, it would be fatal to his well being.

Who knows what she would do in the future to him? That drug was already quite painful, not including the side effects that had occurred, including slight forgetfulness, dizziness, and lose of dignity when he forgot to lock the toilet door in a rush. God forbid that five minutes later some hippie decided to open without knocking…

No, it's not the time to reminisce about the past. It's time to confess the severity of the crime he had committed. But would he have the courage to spurt the wrongness he had done?

He had to try.

"Hai-"

Just then, the phone rang, cutting him the need to confess right then, it was somehow relieving…

_Oh no, please not let it be…_

Ai leaned slightly to the desk beside her chair and held the receiver against her ear. "Ayumi?"

_Oh gawd…_

"…Zoo?"

For once her composure slipped and she stared at the phone. HARD. She was sure she heard that correctly. But she had to confirm.

"…………………..You lust after a puppy…?" And there she was, thinking something along the lines of kids these days and bestiality.

By now only other being besides her in the room was sweating profusely.

Then it struck her hard. Some of her brain cells that seemed to be sleeping finally woke, and she knew what she forgot.

How can she NOT remember this?

"Yeah, I'll see you there. Bye."

After what seemed like a lifetime and a half, she oh so softly placed the receiver back.

_**Click.**_

The bell of the god of death has rung.

"Look- Haibara, I can explain…"

"Please do." If words can kill, he would as well be frozen by now with multiple daggers piercing his heart.

---

"What _exactly _did you tell her?" Her tone was conspicuous of accusation. The sort that police used when they were interrogating criminals (which was more often innocent people at the wrong place at the wrong time rather than criminals, but that changed since the arrival of the so-called 'Japanese police force savior' or some other crap along those lines).

To her dismay, and Conan's relief, their little interrogation the other day was rudely interrupted by the happy professor who suddenly barged in carrying what seemed suspiciously as an omiai photo, humming the tune to Doraemon meanwhile.

This time there would be no interference. Let the interrogation-slash-torture begin.

Instead of using harsh, rude, and often threat to force out what little information her victim could possibly choke out, she used a gentler, more defined method, that was just as or possibly more effective than violence. After all, she wasn't a really big fan of _bodily_ harm.

Psychological terror was always a _bit_ more _interesting. _But somehow, she realized, that maybe bodily harm would do the dense detective better. Watching him choke, with crimson liquid oozing from open wounds would definitely be 'funner' (as how their _peers_ would put it, despite their multiple attempts to save the language from being mercilessly butchered) than seeing him break down from mental devastation or hormone overload.

Yes, she knew her assets and planned to use it to its fullest. As the old saying goes; Old habits does _indeed _die hard.

"I-…" The boy opened his mouth to barely stutter a word then shut it again. It doesn't help that he was distracted by the fact that the certain girl they were referring to kept using _that_ word over and over again in an entirely wrong context, or the fact that his interrogator was currently leaning dangerously close towards him, so close that he was able to smell the scent of her hair (_Vanilla? That's an interesting choice_…), her mint breath (_She didn't really strike as someone who liked such flavor… but then again, it suits her personality well… cold and bittersweet), _notice hercold icy blue eyes that seemed to dance withan unspoken passion for sarcasm (_Is she really half Japanese?),_ her perfect face with high cheekbones and red, luscious lips (_O so fair art thou, my British lady)_. It was enough.

If the fact that his hormones aren't killing him right now, male's common reaction to it would. Actually, he'd rather not think about it. Luckily his dwarfed form didn't bestow such strong reaction his normal body would, or he would've already… let's not make this an M rated fic, shall we?

So he relented, and told her the terrible truth, the truth to what knowledge he had bestowed upon a child, leading her mind disarray, feeding her terrible, cold, fake answers. It was a crime, he knew it, and he was going to confess. "I… told her that it meant…" He paused, staring at the face only inches from him, then briefly continued. "What it really meant." He answered truthfully. It was simple, yet true to the point.

Her eyes flickered to direction of the girl who was laughing along with a slightly oversized boy, a scrawny kid, and an elderly gramps, before she leaned back towards her original position at the opposite end of the table, much to his relief. Then she stared fixatedly at him for one whole, hell of a minute.

Then, from somewhere they heard, "Hey, that panda looks like a big, squishy teddy bear, right, Ayumi-chan?"

"Yep, I lust for it!" Came the cheerful, somewhat air headed reply.

She eyed him some more, this time the intensity was 10 degrees lower, and drastically decreasing. "…Yes… on a different level, Kudou…" For once in her life, she pitied the extent of damage Conan had done to Ayumi and possibly her future.

"Hey, it's not my fault that you left me alone with a curious kid asking what the hell lust is when she doesn't even know the meaning of –mumble mumble- itself!" He argued with a beet red face. Kudou Shinichi, was, despite his good looks and all that athletic and deduction crap, still a mere innocent high school student with too dense of a head regarding the female species.

Ai merely turned away with her eyebrow raised and observed the rest of the Detective Boys, saying nothing more of this matter. The damage had been done, the casualties high. There's no turning that back.

The true victim to the event, however, was not Ayumi, but her. Somehow, _someone_ had managed to take a picture of her in that **_horrendous_**, pitiful excuse of a dress (which Ai later started to think that it was invented for the purpose of humiliating its wearer) and circulated it around the school. God knows how long she had stayed in the bathroom then. How naïve of her to think such thing only happens during high school.

Worst of all, the culprit was still running amok.

If there's something that Haibara Ai a.k.a Miyano Shiho a.k.a Sherry a.k.a The Cold Queen from North Pole wouldn't be caught dead in, it's in a **PINK FRILLY DRESS** yet somehow, she did.

Repeatedly.

Not to mention she had to explain what pedophile meant to the possible victim itself.

---

She was at the zoo, only going along because Ayumi was on one of her I'll-continue-to-bug-you-till-you-agree days.

She only agreed since her constant bugging annoyed the crap out of her, and her fuse had somehow ran short these days. It also didn't help that, that self-proclaimed detective had found a way to further more shorten the fuse by chirping in with his fake-sugary-I-wanna-puke-hearing-it imitation childish tone.

Her mind immediately devised a plot involving drugs, skewers, and sharp objects revolving in her head. Like a bee drawn towards honey, the thought itself was torturously, insanely tempting.

If only…

Well, that just had to wait until they go home.

She trudged along with the group, intentionally walking a bit slower that she would remain at the back of the group, Conan a safe few meters away.

Her face was expressionless as usual as she took note on what they passed. No, she didn't hate it, it was something more than that. This place brought her memories… something she trained herself to let go, to never look back upon. And forget she did, she never reminisced. Until now. How can she not; when the naivety they showed reminded her painfully of what she was… what she would have been if fate was kinder to her.

She had been here before; when Agasa wanted to solve the mystery of the letter his childhood crush left him. It wasn't that painful then, only a few nostalgic pangs here and there. But now, her heart trudged with every step she took, noticing the familiar chatter of _happy_ people, the exhibits that hadn't seem to change with time. After catching a little glance at the group chatting animatedly a few steps in front of her sent a jolt of realization.

_How pitifully dull a human's life is._

She didn't understand people's fascination with this zoo, or with any leisurely activities for that matter. Up until a year ago, mundane, every day things she experienced now was much less an alien activity.

_Why indulge yourself in such matter when you can produce something useful meanwhile? _

She still thought that way.

"Kyaaa!" A high pitched squeal came from the only girl besides her in the group, her short form running ahead towards a petting corner containing _huggable_, adorable, cute little furry creatures. She was the second to arrive.

_But maybe… this isn't so bad…_

For once, a subtle, yet sincere smile slowly formed as the puppy she held licked her cheek.

---

Humans are not immune to the ravages of time. Despite of her not aware of it, he knew. He smiled gently at the rare sight, and joined them.

_Even a little…you've changed._

Unknown to her, he was watching her all this time, taking little bits of notes on how she acted, he noticed how her smile felt more sincere, no longer full of mockery, and her voice seemed gentler, the usual edge on sarcasm gone.

Even if it'll take years, he was going to mend what was wrong.

_**Continued…**_

If you dirty minded people out there are starting to think that Conan is a pedophile for liking someone with a child's body due to his display of –errrhm- lust in some paragraphs, don't. He is perfectly normal in this fic. I assure you. Anyways, setting pedophile and lust aside, please review this chapter, it might help with my writer's block, somehow.

Oh, and I desperately need a list of what the detective boys call each other, I know for a fact that Ai calls them by their family names (I think), but I have no idea which suffix she uses (I also need to know what Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko call each other and how Conan addresses them). Desperately. Need. Help. Been postponing this fic forever due to the above problem. Somehow I've managed to write something that doesn't include names, but I don't know how long this will last…


	4. Chapter 4

Simple yet Complicated

Disclaimer: Do not own DC.

* * *

It has been eight days since her misery began, and yet surprisingly, she managed to survive unscathed with only _major_ bruise on her pride, and perhaps an even bigger trauma towards alcohol.

So far.

She stared at **it **in fixation; cold, probably sweet, probably made out of dairy,and so very probably going to make things really… unpleasant.

"I am lactose intolerant," she said with her usual lack of inflection, in which Conan took with a sigh of relief. He really did not want to hear any emotion behind those simple words. If words could kill... Well, let's just say that Ai would be deadlier than Superman and Batman and random mustached dictators combined. Still. He wanted to see this through.

"Nope," he gingerly edged towards a random passerby, just in case she decided to strike. Even eight year old girls in a pink dress can be deadly if you're stuck in the body of a gnome. "I read your medical files. You're perfectly fine."

"What's lactose intolerant?"

"It's nothing," Ai said somewhat more softly, momentarily allayed by the sight of Ayumi with a dollop of ice cream on her lips. She pointed towards her own mouth and mimed wiping. After Ayumi is sufficiently distracted by Genta, she turned towards Conan. "I don't see the point. Yes. It is logical for me to accompany the group. But I don't see any logic in forcing me to partake in each and every activity. Ice cream?"

"It's one of the rites towards having a happy childhood?"

"So is Santa Claus. And we know how that turns out."

"What? Memories of happy Christmas nights and a sock filled with a pink bunny the next morning?"

"No. Catching your father dressing up as Santa and ending up with a distrust towards adults that will continue throughout the poor child's life."

"Oh gosh," Conan said cheerfully. "Now I know why you turned out this way."

"What's that thing about Santa Claus?"

Ai sighed. "Genta, your ice cream is melting."

"Oh no; my ice cream!"

She turned away from the sound of slurping, a very big, very hungry child and a poor ice cream. "Look, Kudou. I know what you're aiming for. Why don't we cut this- Ugh!" She found her senses being invaded by something that was very definitely off the sweetness chart. She looked at the stupid detective and glared.

He grinned. "Strawberry!"

She had no idea how he could remain so upbeat this early in the morning in a shop this blindingly pink, but she hazarded a guess that a quick shove of strawberry goodness in his face will remedy everything up and she would be allowed to retreat back into the world in her head where Kudou Shinichi was simply a name on the list of casualties from that stupid drug. With the revolting sweet after taste of an artificial strawberry flavor, she started plotting for the immediate gratification of revenge.

* * *

Mitsuhiko shifted from his light foot towards his left. Right. Left. Right. Back and forth.

"You're going to be late!"

"I know, mom!" He said. Softer: "I already am, anyways."

He heard somewhere that what foot you used to step out of your house would determine the course of the whole day. Feng-shui? Or something. And to think that he was seriously considering the something as ridiculous as that. Still. Left. Right. He opened the door and started walking.

Fifteen minutes and a train ride later he found himself at the ice cream shop with the group.

"What took ya so long?" Genta said lazily, a hand patting his tummy, the other holding yet another cone.

"Sorry, the train was uh, late. Err- what happened to your eye?" The latter he addressed to Conan. Certainly, the bruise on his eye looked, well, painful. And black.

"I... fell down the stairs. And hit a pole," said Conan, shifting his glasses up with his index finger.

"That's what she said."

At the sound of the cold, beautiful voice (like a sombre church bell, Mitsuhiko thought with all the metaphoric ability his eight year old mind could muster), he found himself feeling strangely elated. Felt his heartbeat speed up just at the sight of her utterly beautiful, beautiful face (he wanted to liken it to Michelangelo's painting, but he never actually saw one, so that metaphor was moot).

"Nice... to see you here. Mitsuhiko. _Chan_."

Now he was shifting restlessly at his feet. With a reason totally unrelated to feng-shui. "Yeah, the train, um..." He saw Conan nudging at Ai with his elbow, saw her brush him off. It wasn't as if he considered him a _rival_. Friends don't do that to friends. Besides, it wasn't as if he was in lo-

"So, whatcha want, kiddo?"

Mitsuhiko stared at the clerk tapping his finger impatiently at the register, then remembered where he was at. He took a quick survey of the flavors and decided on the easiest. "Vanilla. Vanilla, please."

And it reminded him of _her._

_

* * *

_

"He loves you, you know."

Ai snapped her book shut. "Yes, Kudou, I know that. And getting me to call him by his first name with an endearing suffix attached really doesn't help things, does it?"

"Well," Conan took a seat beside her, resting his hands on his knees. "Most women would find it flattering to have a man pining for her, wouldn't they?"

"And most of those women are not in danger of being charged for statutory rape."

"You and your dirty mi-" He started, but then saw Ai raise an eyebrow in warning and he promptly shut his mouth. "So..." He said again, when said eyebrow was sufficiently level, "What are you going to do about it?"

Ai sighed. "He's eight. Childhood crushes happen all the time, it will pass in a week or two, and by then he will just think of it as stomach flu."

"Sometimes stomach flu can last for a long time, you know."

She spared a glance when she heard the slight drop in his tone, the melancholia. Of course she knew. She saw how he still looked at that girl, after all. All those tragic couples in the history of literature were lucky in the sense that one half was not stuck in the body of a glorified midget while the other remained oblivious. Of course, most of them also die bloodily in the end. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" He said with exaggerated innocence.

"This ridiculous blackmailing scheme. You're just wasting time by taking me off my research."

"Really?" Conan swiveled his chair closer towards hers and lifted the book she was reading. "_The Little Prince_. And I thought by reading this book you'd appreciate childhood more."

"It's about ties and snakes that look like hats. It just makes me think that the author should have gotten a better illustrator." She said, snatching the book aside to put it on the table. "You're losing time, Kudou. We can't go like this forever."

"We're eight. We have all the time in the world. Look."

She followed his gaze upwards.

"All those brilliant constellations. We didn't have time to really look when we were... well. In our bodies; did we?"

"That's not impor-"

"I know!" He snapped his fingers. "We're missing cocoa. Be right back."

"_What._"

And he was gone.

Stupid boy. Of course she had time to look at the stars. Admittedly, she had only looked at them briefly when she channel surfed towards the documentary channels when she was waiting for results in her lab and bored out of her mind. Besides, she liked National Geographic more. They always showed such _huggable _animals. Usually eating each other, but that was just part of the charm.

"Back!"

She felt a warm mug pressed into her hands. She let the warmth seep into her cupped hands and took a cautious, obligatory sip.

"So. What were you thinking?"

"The energy a cheetah expends per minute during a chase."

"Mm. A starry night in autumn, two cups of hot cocoa, and the calorie expenditure of cheetahs. Romantic."

"Indeed. If only all first dates are like this." Finding the drink quite agreeable, Ai took a few tentative gulps before setting it down near the book, making sure they were sufficiently spaced apart. She turned her gaze back towards the skies. "Really. If all first dates were like this, I would have stopped dating long ago and sent myself into a nunnery. Then I would have been too busy preaching the ignorant masses about The Second Coming and we'd both still be able to reach the highest shelf on the produce aisle."

Conan grinned. "That's what adults are for. Getting flour from the top shelf. Besides, you'll get kicked out for exploding dangerous chemicals within the first month, and then we'll just be back to where we started."

"Stuck in the body of an eight year old. Being blackmailed by a pint-sized kid with fake spectacles."

"That's the life."

Silence reigned as both stared at constellations neither knew the names of. Then: "So why the change?"

Conan tilted his head to see Ai looking at him. "What change?"

"The lack of urgency. A few months you ago you were hounding me daily to complete my research. Now you're willingly taking me off it. Find pleasure in it, in fact. I know that toying with me, dressing me up in pink frilly dresses, force feeding me and generally seeing me suffer is not worth more than the few precious weeks put into completing the antidote."

"Are you _sure _it's not?" He said cheerily, but quickly changed his toned when he saw her brows knitting into a scowl. "Maybe I just got used to it?"

"Elaborate."

"Well- sure being dismissed by adults or relearning the multiplication tables all over again are frustrating. But they grow on you, you know? Besides, it's not like I threw my whole life away. My parents know. Heiji; the profes-"

"Everyone who matters but the girl." The sudden drop of his gaze was enough. She flexed her chilled fingers, taking care not to let her palms lose contact from the mug, reveling in the heat inducted through the thin Chinese ceramic. It was not as if she was being deliberately cruel – reminding him like that. A form of silly revenge, perhaps. After all, only three years ago she would have

Would have shot him in cold blood instead of allowing him to dent her pride like that – even as a prank. Wouldn't have engaged in such trivial banters. Wouldn't have wasted time acting as chaperone to a bunch of hyperactive kids. Would have spent all day shut inside her laboratory, mixing dangerous substances; hands trembling, eyes darting towards the door just in case Gin walks in unannounced and

"Yes. Everyone but Ran." She heard him say. Had expected bitterness but found only an indecipherable measured tone. He examined the palm of a hand. "It would be so easy to just walk up to her and tell her everything, right? She did... have her suspicions. Almost caught me a few times. Actually there were times I. But-"

"But the stupid male-cum-detective ego always gets in the way. 'Just a few more months until I bring down the organization in flames,' 'can't tell her because dead bodies keep piling up on me and it's my sworn duty to solve them all,' 'let me play the martyr because she's just a helpless little girl with a black belt in karate.'"Of course, she knew she said it in such a monotone that it was implausible to get a rise out of Conan with such a weak mockery.

True to her theory, Conan attempted to look furious. Before failing miserably when the hint of a smile begin to creep onto the corner of his lips. He whistled the tune that Ai had established a near phobia for, and tapped his pocket. "Don't forget, it might be unwise to provoke me at this stage. I've got this and the _photos_, y'know."

Thumbing _The Little Price _open, Ai started again from the top. "Fine if you want to continue avoiding the subject," she said, not bothering to even avert her eyes in a side-way glance. "But do you have to carry that _everywhere_?"

"Oh, don't worry. I have several copies strewn around, so this one's damaged... well." (_Damn. _Ai's inner voice went.) He peeked curiously at her. "How can you hold a conversation while reading a book? I always end up re-reading a paragraph if I do that."

"Superior intellect."

"Mmm hmm. By the way. Tomorrow. Ran's going shopping."

Ai flipped a page. "_And?_"

Wide, utterly too-happy-grin. "You're coming with her. For the full day."

And that was when Ai ended up re-reading the whole goddamn page. _Thrice._

**_Continued_**

**_

* * *

_**

It's been a long while, I know. I apologize for that. And for any (the) inconsistencies with the writing style and characterization and general plot. This is where I really would appreciate general input and criticism (and ideas! Oh how I love ideas) on how this fic. It's not a promise, not by a long shot, but I will try, _try _to finish it. It would just be unfair if I don't.

Also, I need to capture my humor sense back. It fled to a place I'm not sure I want to follow.


End file.
